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While i cant offer personal experience I can share with you what ive picked up about the different swingarm mods.

You mention 2 Options through Mean Cycles but if im not mistaken there are/were I think 4 different designs which were (listed in no particular order)
1. a modified Stock Swingarm. The stock driveshaft side of the swingarm is ground out at the area where the tire would rub enough to account for tire expansion at highway speeds. Considering there have been more then a couple bikes where the UNMODIFIED stock Swingarm broke out of the blue with No Obvious reason you wouldnt catch me putting one of those on my bike! Purposefully removing material on my Swingarm in order to squeeze a fatter tire in the space is not Something I would Considered or Advocate but that is Just MY Opinion and there have been members who have went this route and couldnt be happier!

2. A Rounded Tube aftermarket Swingarm made by cyclehouse (version 1 i believe). If i remember correctly this version was 1 piece but was made to allow the clearance needed to fit up to a 300mm, maybe even 310mm. This came in chrome or preped for paint. There were alot of warping and fitment issues which turned it into more of a project that most people were not equipped to handle as they were expecting, and rightly so, A Out of the Box Bolt on swap which wasnt the case. This was however the Best Looking version IMHO, but looks mean nothing if it dont work!

3. Version 2 from Cycle House ( As i stated above I may be wrong about who the maker of which design is so please verify this info) This version was made from rectangular stock material on the right side that came in 2 pieces. Once mounted and properly fitted to the bike you will now have the ability to Unbolt the Swingarm portion (right side) without the need to remove the entire part.
I do remember a few minor fitment issues but by far this is the style most members seemed to be the most satisfied with.

4. The 4th style is a knockoff of the 2 piece cyclehouse kit version 2 and i dont know much beyond that or if that is even close to being factual!

While i cant offer personal experience I can share with you what ive picked up about the different swingarm mods.

You mention 2 Options through Mean Cycles but if im not mistaken there are/were I think 4 different designs which were (listed in no particular order)
1. a modified Stock Swingarm. The stock driveshaft side of the swingarm is ground out at the area where the tire would rub enough to account for tire expansion at highway speeds. Considering there have been more then a couple bikes where the UNMODIFIED stock Swingarm broke out of the blue with No Obvious reason you wouldnt catch me putting one of those on my bike! Purposefully removing material on my Swingarm in order to squeeze a fatter tire in the space is not Something I would Considered or Advocate but that is Just MY Opinion and there have been members who have went this route and couldnt be happier!

2. A Rounded Tube aftermarket Swingarm made by cyclehouse (version 1 i believe). If i remember correctly this version was 1 piece but was made to allow the clearance needed to fit up to a 300mm, maybe even 310mm. This came in chrome or preped for paint. There were alot of warping and fitment issues which turned it into more of a project that most people were not equipped to handle as they were expecting, and rightly so, A Out of the Box Bolt on swap which wasnt the case. This was however the Best Looking version IMHO, but looks mean nothing if it dont work!

3. Version 2 from Cycle House ( As i stated above I may be wrong about who the maker of which design is so please verify this info) This version was made from rectangular stock material on the right side that came in 2 pieces. Once mounted and properly fitted to the bike you will now have the ability to Unbolt the Swingarm portion (right side) without the need to remove the entire part.
I do remember a few minor fitment issues but by far this is the style most members seemed to be the most satisfied with.

4. The 4th style is a knockoff of the 2 piece cyclehouse kit version 2 and i dont know much beyond that or if that is even close to being factual!

The 2 piece swing arm (#3 above) was not from Cyclehouse. It was sold by Swampworks. There were 2 versions of it as well because the first version had a couple of reports of a weak area where the shock mount was. The second version had that area beefed up.

I have the Swampworks 2 piece swing arm on my 9. 2 piece is the way to go. It makes tire changes a breeze as long as you have short exhaust. I’m not familiar with the 2 versions MeanCycles has now. I would need to check them out, but if it is the same design as what Swampworks had, that is what I would recommend.

The 2 piece swing arm (#3 above) was not from Cyclehouse. It was sold by Swampworks. There were 2 versions of it as well because the first version had a couple of reports of a weak area where the shock mount was. The second version had that area beefed up.

I have the Swampworks 2 piece swing arm on my 9. 2 piece is the way to go. It makes tire changes a breeze as long as you have short exhaust. I’m not familiar with the 2 versions MeanCycles has now. I would need to check them out, but if it is the same design as what Swampworks had, that is what I would recommend.

Poseidon, Thanks for clearing that up for me.

I Completely Forgot About Swampworks Although I was under the impression that Cycle house and swampworks sorta collaborated on the 2 piece version! do you know if this is the case or not?

I'm planning on buying one of these Mean Cycles arms next year, prepping for the next tire change. May or may not go for the 300, but the arm will make tire changes easier for a ten inch 280 combo. Has anyone here bought and fitted one of these arms yet? Because I recall some had some bad problems with one of these two-piece arms. The sheriff dude down in Texas being one of them. I recall he had a terrible time of it.

I Completely Forgot About Swampworks Although I was under the impression that Cycle house and swampworks sorta collaborated on the 2 piece version! do you know if this is the case or not?

Im not sure who was making them, but I was under the impression it was not CycleHouse as they had competing products. I may be incorrect, but I think I remember someone saying that Andy’s dad had something to do with the design or production of them. I could be wrong tho, so don’t quote me on that.

I just went to MeanCycles site. That 2 piece swing arm looks just like the one Swampworks had. It is listed as a CycleHouse product. I wonder if they were the ones making them all along, or if they just bought the rights to make them, or possibly are purchasing them directly from whoever made them to begin with. Either way, they look enough alike that I would venture to say they are identical.

Well, I currently am doing a 310 for a customer. The MC swingarm he got for it leaves a lot to be desired in the weld department. Now the opinion is still out in the strength/rigidity department for it. But the aesthetics of the welds are not a finished product at all. The suspension bolt mounts were also off and had to be modified to make the bolt alignment work properly.

Now, with all that said, a good amount of aftermarket products do not also have the best fit--- but will usually work with some elbow grease behind it. If you have to modify it, then it is not a finished product. If a product has a great finish, it is almost always a finished product--- as they have taken the time to test it, proof it, and finish it.

I am almost always working on a bike. If you have questions and need an answer quickly, just call me. 317-507-0940. Always up late. There will be time for sleep when I am dead!

Well damn, none of this gives me a warm and fuzzy feeling on dropping that kind of change on one. I was gonna go chrome too, which means if it needs modified it’s going to mess up the chrome playing .....hmmmm

Well damn, none of this gives me a warm and fuzzy feeling on dropping that kind of change on one. I was gonna go chrome too, which means if it needs modified it’s going to mess up the chrome playing .....hmmmm

Which arm are you working with for your customer ?

Then i feel like we did you a great service so that you take it slowly

Well damn, none of this gives me a warm and fuzzy feeling on dropping that kind of change on one. I was gonna go chrome too, which means if it needs modified it’s going to mess up the chrome playing .....hmmmm

Which arm are you working with for your customer ?

Me as well. Going to have to think really hard about dropping the kind of dough they want for a part that doesn't work properly. Don't really care about the welds, but the suspension parts not lining up is a big NO for me. Guess I won't be doing a 300 after all.

FuturR and I have had some very in-depth conversations regarding the 300 Swing Arms being sold by MEANCYCLES. One of the major problems we found with all of them is that MEANCYCLES has produced absolutely NO information, specs, sales data, or customer reviews to validate the quality, durability, dependability, or fitment of either of the Swing Arms they provide. It sounds to me as though MEANCYCLES saw an opportunity left by the void created when Swampworks decided to shutdown their operation. But, MEANCYCLES has failed miserably to provide ANY assurance to potential buyers that their Swing Arms are safe, durable, dependable, made of high-quality/appropriate gauge steel, and accurately manufactured to fit perfectly on the M109R bikes consistently. At the cost of $1050.00 or any lower cost, having an inferior or defective Swing Arm installed could possibly create a matter of life or death for M109R owners. There’s just too much at risk for any manufacturer or distributor of Swing Arms to ever lack giving customers complete and concise information regarding such a critical component to the safe riding of potential customers.

I’ve personally spoken with at least 3 employees at MEANCYCLES over the last several months, having requested some facts/data to support their claim regarding the quality and fitment of their Swing Arm products. Each time, neither employee could provide any sort of information other than to tell me they have sold many of each of them. They don’t have any customer reviews posted on their site about any of them either, which is a big red flag for me.

I know a very few have done it in the past, but there’s ABSOLUTELY no way or reason on earth I would ever notch the stock Swing Arm or any Swing Arm, thereby very possibly compromising the integrity and strength of the metal in that area of the Swing Arm (it is not very thick there to begin with), which could/would also compromise my own safety. Moreover, we’re talking about using a 300 tire here. To fit a 300 tire on a 10” rear wheel inside of a notched stock Swing Arm, one would very likely have to make a notch so deep into the metal of the stock Swing Arm that it would create a hole in the Swing Arm. No matter what one tries to do, a 300 rear setup is not going to fit safely into a notched stock Swing Arm without creating an accident waiting to happen. No where on the Swing Arm should the metal be cut into for any reason. The risks are just too high in my opinion.

FuturR and I have had some very in-depth conversations regarding the 300 Swing Arms being sold by MEANCYCLES. One of the major problems we found with all of them is that MEANCYCLES has produced absolutely NO information, specs, sales data, or customer reviews to validate the quality, durability, dependability, or fitment of either of the Swing Arms they provide. It sounds to me as though MEANCYCLES saw an opportunity left by the void created when Swampworks decided to shutdown their operation. But, MEANCYCLES has failed miserably to provide ANY assurance to potential buyers that their Swing Arms are safe, durable, dependable, made of high-quality/appropriate gauge steel, and accurately manufactured to fit perfectly on the M109R bikes consistently. At the cost of $1050.00 or any lower cost, having an inferior or defective Swing Arm installed could possibly create a matter of life or death for M109R owners. There’s just too much at risk for any manufacturer or distributor of Swing Arms to ever lack giving customers complete and concise information regarding such a critical component to the safe riding of potential customers.

I’ve personally spoken with at least 3 employees at MEANCYCLES over the last several months, having requested some facts/data to support their claim regarding the quality and fitment of their Swing Arm products. Each time, neither employee could provide any sort of information other than to tell me they have sold many of each of them. They don’t have any customer reviews posted on their site about any of them either, which is a big red flag for me.

Has anyone spoke to JC directly. If his website is correct, contacting CycleHouse might yield better info. It would be good to know if the 2 piece swingarm is the same design and manufacturer Swampworks used or if it is a new design or manufacturer.

Has anyone spoke to JC directly. If his website is correct, contacting CycleHouse might yield better info. It would be good to know if the 2 piece swingarm is the same design and manufacturer Swampworks used or if it is a new design or manufacturer.

On a couple of the calls, I asked to speak with JC, because his employees could not answer any of my questions. Each time I was told he was not available. Subsequently, I requested to have him return my call, but I never heard back from him. My opinion is that his employees should be able to provide more information than simply “we have sold many of each of our Swing Arms” without any additional data, specs, or customer reviews to support the company’s claim that they are advertising a quality product. JC is very aware of the history surrounding Swing Arms for the M109R, and he should’ve had the foresight to know he would need concrete data and specs listed or available for a product that has been heavily scrutinized by the M109R community in the past. MEANCYCLES has no information available to substantiate the validity of either of their Swing Arms, which I find to be a HUGE mistake. Furthermore, I strongly doubt they have sold even a few of them, which would explain why there are no customer reviews available on their site, regarding their Swing Arms.

Furthermore, I strongly doubt they have sold even a few of them, which would explain why there are no customer reviews available on their site, regarding their Swing Arms.

Makes ya wonder, huh. If they've sold so many of them, where are the bikes with them? I've not ever seen one. I've seen a lot of different Nines in the 12 years I've owned mine, and all of them still had stock rims and tires on them. Only two Nines I've ever seen with even a Dunlop Elite III 250 are mine and my friend Sam's. In 2007, at Eureeka Springs during the 3DDM event, there were only one or two that had anything other than stock tires, rims weren't available at that time iirc.

I was really wanting to buy one of these arms next year, but I doubt it will happen now.

On a couple of the calls, I asked to speak with JC, because his employees could not answer any of my questions. Each time I was told he was not available. Subsequently, I requested to have him return my call, but I never heard back from him. My opinion is that his employees should be able to provide more information than simply “we have sold many of each of our Swing Arms” without any additional data, specs, or customer reviews to support the company’s claim that they are advertising a quality product. JC is very aware of the history surrounding Swing Arms for the M109R, and he should’ve had the foresight to know he would need concrete data and specs listed or available for a product that has been heavily scrutinized by the M109R community in the past. MEANCYCLES has no information available to substantiate the validity of either of their Swing Arms, which I find to be a HUGE mistake. Furthermore, I strongly doubt they have sold even a few of them, which would explain why there are no customer reviews available on their site, regarding their Swing Arms.

My life experiences have taught me that A person/company trying to add to their fortunes by selling a product will Always try to Boast of its features while Hiding its Flaws! So the fact that you cant get any info to me means they have something negative about the Swingarms to hide and they are hoping for the Uninformed Customer to make an Uninformed decision to buy their product and probably counting on the fact that most people will go through the Extra work and trouble to make the part fit versus taking a hit on the return shipping and having the bike down longer then they anticipated!

Well, I currently am doing a 310 for a customer. The MC swingarm he got for it leaves a lot to be desired in the weld department. Now the opinion is still out in the strength/rigidity department for it. But the aesthetics of the welds are not a finished product at all. The suspension bolt mounts were also off and had to be modified to make the bolt alignment work properly.

Now, with all that said, a good amount of aftermarket products do not also have the best fit--- but will usually work with some elbow grease behind it. If you have to modify it, then it is not a finished product. If a product has a great finish, it is almost always a finished product--- as they have taken the time to test it, proof it, and finish it.

I was texting with Bobby about the mods you say are needed. What exactly had to be done to make it work. Cut off parts and re-weld new ones on? Plug holes and re-drill them? Curious what's involved with making it work. Ugly welds can be sanded/filed and the arm powder-coated. I don't have a problem with that. But would hate to have to make major modifications to the arm to make it fit.

Makes ya wonder, huh. If they've sold so many of them, where are the bikes with them? I've not ever seen one. I've seen a lot of different Nines in the 12 years I've owned mine, and all of them still had stock rims and tires on them. Only two Nines I've ever seen with even a Dunlop Elite III 250 are mine and my friend Sam's. In 2007, at Eureeka Springs during the 3DDM event, there were only one or two that had anything other than stock tires, rims weren't available at that time iirc.

I was really wanting to buy one of these arms next year, but I doubt it will happen now.

First, MeanCycles didn’t have a 2 piece swing arm until well after Swampworks closed up shop. There are lots of 9’s with the Swampworks 2 piece. Mine is one of them.

If... this is the same swing arm, mine fit perfectly without modification. It was a direct bolt on. Only modification needed was to the passenger foot peg mounting bracket. Had to bend it out slightly so the swing arm would clear it when the air ride is lowered all the way down.

While you had no problem, FuturR says he did. Bobby tells me via text that the fix involved cutting off parts and rewelding new parts on to get the suspension holes to line up properly. That's not something I desire to do after purchasing a 1000+ dollar part. So, looks like my plans to buy one next year are done for. No thanks, I'll pass.

The 2 piece 300 swingarm that Meancycle has is made by Cycle House, it is a exact duplicate off Swampworks, Meancycles is the now distributor of Cycle House product as they purchased the rights for the company from DLP and is now sole distributor for them.

I have used both swingarms for 300 install, while I like the 2 piece I like the look of Cycle House better. Both are take the 300 install with ease, even though the cycle house is a one piece it installed very easy. I only use the Avon 300 tire as it fits the best and rubs the least the meztzler doesn't fit and rubs more, you will need to move your wheel over a little more.

While you had no problem, FuturR says he did. Bobby tells me via text that the fix involved cutting off parts and rewelding new parts on to get the suspension holes to line up properly. That's not something I desire to do after purchasing a 1000+ dollar part. So, looks like my plans to buy one next year are done for. No thanks, I'll pass.

Rob, that’s a smart decision. Until MEANCYCLES provides some factual data, specs, and either customer reviews or tested results on their Swing Arms, it wouldn’t be wise to compromise your walllet and your safety over such a critical bike component with an exorbitant cost. Yes, I believe MEANCYCLES costs for the 2-Piece Swing Arm is excessive and inflated. The Swampworks 2-Piece Swing Arm cost was only $650 (raw finish) - $700 or $750 (primered and black powder coat finish).

It still bothers me when I think about the way things materialized on this forum that caused Andy Caballero and his family to shut down their family-owned SwampWorks operation. There is a large number of members here (including myself) and around the world still riding very confidently on SwampWorks’ 2-Piece Swing Arms after several years. That says a lot about the validity of the product and quality of their work.

The 2 piece 300 swingarm that Meancycle has is made by Cycle House, it is a exact duplicate off Swampworks, Meancycles is the now distributor of Cycle House product as they purchased the rights for the company from DLP and is now sole distributor for them.

I have used both swingarms for 300 install, while I like the 2 piece I like the look of Cycle House better. Both are take the 300 install with ease, even though the cycle house is a one piece it installed very easy. I only use the Avon 300 tire as it fits the best and rubs the least the meztzler doesn't fit and rubs more, you will need to move your wheel over a little more.

Bigpapa call me I can't find your cell.

Andy
516-359-6789

Hello Andy, and thank you for shedding some light on this Swing Arm issue. This information would’ve been extremely helpful to all of us if it was published on the MEANCYCLES website for general consumption, especially because there has been a great deal of concern in the past, regarding the specs, data, durability, dependability, and overall customer satisfaction associated with the Swing Arms.

As for moving the wheel over slightly, is that going to create a gap where the wheel and hub come together, which would also mean that the teeth inside may not be fully seeded together as it is with the stock setup, or a wheel that has not been moved over? I’m just asking so when I make my decision to go with my next 300 Swing Arm for my next 9 project I can make an informed decision.

Hello Andy, and thank you for shedding some light on this Swing Arm issue. This information would’ve been extremely helpful to all of us if it was published on the MEANCYCLES website for general consumption, especially because there has been a great deal of concern in the past, regarding the specs, data, durability, dependability, and overall customer satisfaction associated with the Swing Arms.

As for moving the wheel over slightly, is that going to create a gap where the wheel and hub come together, which would also mean that the teeth inside may not be fully seeded together as it is with the stock setup, or a wheel that has not been moved over? I’m just asking so when I make my decision to go with my next 300 Swing Arm for my next 9 project I can make an informed decision.

Thanks Bro, and be blessed...as always!!!

The spacer to move the wheel over would be added in the rim not the gears, between the rim hub and the rim but modifications would also need to be done on the rotor side so rotor and caliper would line up. Bill aka Dam Guy is the first or at least one of the first to do this.

The spacer to move the well over would be added in the rim not the gears, between the rim hub and the rim but modifications would also need to be done on the rotor side so rotor and caliper would line up. Bill aka Dam Guy is tge first or at least one of the first to do this.

Okay, I understand now. That’s seems like a great approach to moving the wheel over.

The 2 piece 300 swingarm that Meancycle has is made by Cycle House, it is a exact duplicate off Swampworks, Meancycles is the now distributor of Cycle House product as they purchased the rights for the company from DLP and is now sole distributor for them.

I have used both swingarms for 300 install, while I like the 2 piece I like the look of Cycle House better. Both are take the 300 install with ease, even though the cycle house is a one piece it installed very easy. I only use the Avon 300 tire as it fits the best and rubs the least the meztzler doesn't fit and rubs more, you will need to move your wheel over a little more.

Bigpapa call me I can't find your cell.

Andy
516-359-6789

Thanks for clearing that up Andy. I figured it was most likely the same swingarm, but I didn’t know for sure.

Are you going to make it to the MAM this year? You missed a good one last year!